Automated message enumerated notification

ABSTRACT

The described method and system provide a connectivity problem resolution mechanism that uses a data mode call in order to diagnose a connection problem while avoiding audible ringing and or inadvertent user pick-up during error diagnosis and correction. The system includes three primary functions and elements including cellular error message recognition, error response handling configured to update and/or maintain processes, and new error message capture. This system is usable both online and offline. Error recognition may be based on error message matching or keyword matching.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As mobile communications devices have become increasingly popular, thechallenges associated with maintaining devices and networks infunctional condition have also increased. With so many devices, so manynetworks, and so many intervening nodes, the number of possible errorsand error combinations is enormous. For example, even a single user mayexperience a communication problem that is due to his or her phone or tothe call center, or to a node between the two. With respect to each ofthese potential error sources, there are numerous potential error modesand mechanisms.

Most users do not have the technical knowledge or access to resourcesrequired to resolve substantial communications problems. Moreover, it isdifficult for a third party with such knowledge to assist the userremotely. Currently, when communications problems arise, human advisorswill often attempt to check the status of a mobile dialing number(MDN/MIN) by manually dialing the number with a telephone, and thenlistening for a response (e.g., the user's recorded message). Next theadvisor defines and executes a number of corrective actions or stepsdepending upon the nature of the connection achieved with the remotedevice.

This system of dialing a number, listening to a response, and thendefining and executing corrective measures has numerous drawbacks. Forexample, it is time-consuming. Moreover, the dialing of a number with astandard voice telephone can occasionally result in a connection to alive person instead of the targeted device, e.g., a customer's vehicletelematics unit. Not only does this not assist in solving the user'sproblem; it also presents an awkward social situation that the advisormust gently resolve before continuing to attempt to solve thecommunications problem of interest.

An advisor may spend ten minutes or more on technical calls attemptingto troubleshoot each subscriber issue. In addition, offline advisors aresometimes made aware of potential issues that could impact asubscriber's connectivity. While researching such issues, an advisorwill often attempt to call the number in the vehicle for some directionon next steps, depending on the message heard, or if the subscriberpicks up.

For the above reasons and others, there is a long-felt and unresolvedneed for a system that assists is solving user connectivity problems byavoiding the use of human advisors to a large extent, and by providingmore substantive guidance for problem solving when manual interventionby a live advisor is required, saving time and minimizing cost.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a problem resolution mechanism that initiallyattempts to connect to a vehicle in data mode, i.e., using carriertones. This avoids audible ringing and any potential user pick-up in thetelematics equipped vehicle, while still allowing the system tointerpret the resulting connection, e.g., via receiving and interpretingan error message.

The system includes three primary functions or functional modulesincluding cellular error message recognition, error response handlingwith ability to update and/or maintain processes, and capturing newerror messages. This system is usable both online, where the customer isaware of the advisor's actions in real time, and offline, where thecustomer is not aware of the advisor's actions.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent uponreading the following detailed description and upon reference to thedrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an operating environment for a mobilevehicle communication system;

FIG. 2 is a structured process flow diagram showing a process accordingto a first usage scenario in keeping with an aspect of the describedprinciples;

FIG. 3 is a structured process flow diagram showing a process accordingto a second usage scenario in keeping with an aspect of the describedprinciples;

FIG. 4 is a structured process flow diagram showing a process accordingto a third usage scenario in keeping with an aspect of the describedprinciples; and

FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram showing a process for error detectionand correction according to an aspect of the described principles.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Before discussing the details of the invention and the environmentwherein the invention may be used, a brief overview is given to guidethe reader. In overview, not intended to limit the claims, the inventionprovides a communication error resolution mechanism that executescellular error message recognition, error response handling with abilityto update and maintain processes, and capturing of new error messages.This system is usable both online as well as offline, where the customeris not aware of the advisor's actions. To begin problem resolution, thesystem connects to a vehicle telematics unit in data mode to avoidaudible ringing within the telematics equipped vehicle, while stillallowing the system to receive and interpret error messages.

Depending upon error messages received during the data call, the systemwill automatically select and execute a corrective action, e.g.,updating internal account parameters or requesting that the cellularprovider re-enable a particular phone number. For example, if the systemreceives the message “the cellular number you have called is notactive,” it recognizes the error message and takes appropriate action.In one implementation, upon receiving this message, the systemautomatically attempts to reactivate the device MIN/MDN via an interfacewith the appropriate carrier's provisioning system. The system may thennotify the live advisor of the outcome and any required next steps.

Because communications systems tend to evolve fairly rapidly, it may bethat the system receives an error message with which it is not familiar.In such a case, the system will send the message to an administrator torevise/update system definitions and processes. Additionally oralternatively, the system may search for key words in a previouslyunknown message, and may take action based on identifying such words.For example, the words/phrases “inactive,” “deactivated,” “notavailable,” “outside coverage area,” etc. may be used to triggerspecific corrective activities.

In yet another implementation, which may be used to replace or tocomplement the above-mentioned handling of unknown messages, the audiofrom the cellular message may be captured and passed on to a liveadvisor.

Thus, with the described system, the live advisor's manual process canbe shortened through a three part automated process that not onlyassists with the immediate communication problem, but also allows thesystem to learn new errors and solutions to facilitate the solution offuture communications problems. The system thus includes three primaryportions, namely automated cellular error message recognition, automatederror response handling with the ability to update and maintainprocesses, and the capture/processing of new error messages.

The automated cellular error message recognition portion includes a setof respective identifiers, i.e., message number, message text etc.,stored in a database, lookup table, or other data structure, for a setof known and recognized messages, with computer executable instructionson the same or different computer readable medium to recognize suchmessages. The set of known messages may include the set of all cellularmessages played by one or more specific cellular providers.

The second portion discussed above consists of a service submitting theappropriate information for error resolution. This as well may consistof computer readable instructions on a computer readable medium forexecuting the required transmissions. In one example, the MDN/MIN ESNinformation is sent to the cellular provider of interest to re-enablethe number on that network or to return the updated pairing information.

The third portion discussed above is related to the first part, butcomes into play when an error message is not within the existing set ofknown error messages. In an implementation, this third portion, whichfacilitates learning of new error messages, notifies an administratorand also transmits the captured audio to the administrator upondetecting an unknown error message. The administrator or the detectedremedial actions taken by that administrator are then used to update theset used in the first portion of the process, so that the previouslyunknown error message becomes part of the recognized set.

There are a number of usage scenarios for the system. In one scenario,an offline advisor is working to resolve a subscriber communicationsissue. In this scenario, the system allows for faster response anddecreased advisor handling time. Furthermore, there is an increase incustomer transparency and satisfaction due to the use of a data callinstead of voice call. In a scenario involving inbound technicaladvisors, the system can be used for one or both of initial problemresolution, and subsequent retesting after resolution to ensure that anyupdates have corrected the previous issue. The use of this system duringthat call will significantly shorten the time needed to validate anychanges.

Finally, the system may be used to execute a batched automated check ona group of predefined vehicles. In this usage scenario, the system autodials the vehicles (i.e., telematics units) on that list, detects thecellular error messages, and processes predefined steps based on thecellular message returned.

Given this overview, an exemplary environment in which the invention mayoperate is described hereinafter. It will be appreciated that thedescribed environment is an example, and does not imply any limitationregarding the use of other environments to practice the invention. Withreference to FIG. 1 there is shown an example of a communication system100 that may be used with the present method and generally includes avehicle 102, a wireless carrier system 104, a land network 106 and acall center 108. It should be appreciated that the overall architecture,setup and operation, as well as the individual components of a systemsuch as that shown here are generally known in the art. Thus, thefollowing paragraphs simply provide a brief overview of one suchexemplary information system 100; however, other systems not shown herecould employ the present method as well.

Vehicle 102 is preferably a mobile vehicle such as a motorcycle, car,truck, recreational vehicle (RV), boat, plane, etc., and is equippedwith suitable hardware and software that enables it to communicate oversystem 100. Some of the vehicle hardware 110 is shown generally in FIG.1 including a telematics unit 114, a microphone 116, a speaker 118 andbuttons and/or controls 120 connected to the telematics unit 114.Operatively coupled to the telematics unit 114 is a network connectionor vehicle bus 122. Examples of suitable network connections include acontroller area network (CAN), a media oriented system transfer (MOST),a local interconnection network (UN), an Ethernet, and other appropriateconnections such as those that conform with known ISO, SAE, and IEEEstandards and specifications, to name a few.

The telematics unit 114 is an onboard device that provides a variety ofservices through its communication with the call center 108, andgenerally includes an electronic processing device 128 one or more typesof electronic memory 130, a cellular chipset/component 124, a wirelessmodem 126, a dual antenna 160 and a navigation unit containing a GPSchipset/component 132. In one example, the wireless modem 126 iscomprised of a computer program and/or set of software routinesexecuting within processing device 128. The cellular chipset/component124 and the wireless modem 126 may be called the network access device(NAD) 180 of the telematics unit 114.

The telematics unit 114 provides too many services to list them all, butseveral examples include: turn-by-turn directions and othernavigation-related services provided in conjunction with the GPS basedchipset/component 132; airbag deployment notification and otheremergency or roadside assistance-related services provided in connectionwith various crash and or collision sensor interface modules 156 andsensors 158 located throughout the vehicle. Infotainment-relatedservices where music, Web pages, movies, television programs, videogames and/or other content is downloaded by an infotainment center 136operatively connected to the telematics unit 114 via vehicle bus 122 andaudio bus 112. In one example, downloaded content is stored for currentor later playback.

Again, the above-listed services are by no means an exhaustive list ofall the capabilities of telematics unit 114, as should be appreciated bythose skilled in the art, but are simply an illustration of some of theservices that the telematics unit 114 is capable of offering. It isanticipated that telematics unit 114 include a number of knowncomponents in addition to those listed above.

Vehicle communications preferably use radio transmissions to establish avoice channel with wireless carrier system 104 so that both voice anddata transmissions can be sent and received over the voice channel.Vehicle communications are enabled via the cellular chipset/component124 for voice communications and a wireless modem 126 for datatransmission. In order to enable successful data transmission over thevoice channel, wireless modem 126 applies some type of encoding ormodulation to convert the digital data so that it can communicatethrough a vocoder or speech codec incorporated in the cellularchipset/component 124. Any suitable encoding or modulation techniquethat provides an acceptable data rate and bit error can be used with thepresent method. Dual mode antenna 160 services the OPS chipset/componentand the cellular chipset/component.

Microphone 116 provides the driver or other vehicle occupant with ameans for inputting verbal or other auditory commands, and can beequipped with an embedded voice processing unit utilizing ahuman/machine interface (HMI) technology known in the art. Conversely,speaker 118 provides verbal output to the vehicle occupants and can beeither a stand-alone speaker specifically dedicated for use with thetelematics unit 114 or can be part of a vehicle audio component 154. Ineither event, microphone 116 and speaker 118 enable vehicle hardware 110and call center 108 to communicate with the occupants through audiblespeech. The vehicle hardware also includes one or more buttons orcontrols 120 for enabling a vehicle occupant to activate or engage oneor more of the vehicle hardware components 110. For example, one of thebuttons 120 can be an electronic push button used to initiate voicecommunication with call center 108 (whether it be a live advisor 148 oran automated call response system). In another example, one of thebuttons 120 can be used to initiate emergency services.

The audio component 154 is operatively connected to the vehicle bus 122and the audio bus 112. The audio component 154 receives analoginformation, rendering it as sound, via the audio bus 112. Digitalinformation is received via the vehicle bus 122. The audio component 154provides AM and FM radio, CD, DVD, and multimedia functionalityindependent of the infotainment center 136. Audio component 154 maycontain a speaker system, or may utilize speaker 118 via arbitration onvehicle bus 122 and/or audio bus 112.

The vehicle crash and/or collision detection sensor interface 156 areoperatively connected to the vehicle bus 122. The crash sensors 158provide information to the telematics unit 114 via the crash and/orcollision detection sensor interface 156 regarding the severity of avehicle collision, such as the angle of impact and the amount of forcesustained.

Vehicle sensors 162, connected to various sensor interface modules 134are operatively connected to the vehicle bus 122. Example vehiclesensors include but are not limited to gyroscopes, accelerometers,magnetometers, emission detection and/or control sensors, and the like.Example sensor interface modules 134 include power train control,climate control, and body control, to name but a few.

Wireless carrier system 104 is preferably a cellular telephone system orany other suitable wireless system that transmits signals between thevehicle hardware 110 and land network 106. According to an example,wireless carrier system 104 includes one or more cell towers 138, basestations and/or mobile switching centers (MSCs) 140, as well as anyother networking components required to connect the wireless system 104with land network 106. A component in the mobile switching center mayinclude a remote data server 180. As appreciated by those skilled in theart, various cell tower/base station/MSC arrangements are possible andcould be used with wireless system 104. For example, a base station anda cell tower could be co-located at the same site or they could beremotely located, and a single base station could be coupled to variouscell towers or various base stations could be coupled with a single MSC,to but a few of the possible arrangements. Preferably, a speech codec orvocoder is incorporated in one or more of the base stations, butdepending on the particular architecture of the wireless network, itcould be incorporated within a Mobile Switching Center or some othernetwork components as well.

Land network 106 can be a conventional land-based telecommunicationsnetwork that is connected to one or more landline telephones andconnects wireless carrier network 104 to call center 108. For example,land network 106 can include a public switched telephone network (PSTN)and/or an Internet protocol (1P) network, as is appreciated by thoseskilled in the art. Of course, one or more segments of the land network106 can be implemented in the form of a standard wired network, a fiberor other optical network, a cable network, other wireless networks suchas wireless local networks (WLANs) or networks providing broadbandwireless access (BWA), or any combination thereof.

Call Center (OCC) 108 is designed to provide the vehicle hardware 110with a number of different system back-end functions and, according tothe example shown here, generally includes one or more switches 142,servers 144, databases 146, live advisors 148, as well as a variety ofother telecommunication and computer equipment 150 that is known tothose skilled in the art. These various call center components arepreferably coupled to one another via a network connection or bus 152,such as the one previously described in connection with the vehiclehardware 110. Switch 142, which can be a private branch exchange (PBX)switch, routes incoming signals so that voice transmissions are usuallysent to either the live advisor 148 or an automated response system, anddata transmissions are passed on to a modem or other piece of equipment150 for demodulation and further signal processing.

The modem 150 preferably includes an encoder, as previously explained,and can be connected to various devices such as a server 144 anddatabase 146. For example, database 146 could be designed to storesubscriber profile records, subscriber behavioral patterns, or any otherpertinent subscriber information. Although the illustrated example hasbeen described as it would be used in conjunction with a manned callcenter 108, it will be appreciated that the call center 108 can be anycentral or remote facility, manned or unmanned, mobile or fixed, to orfrom which it is desirable to exchange voice and data.

As noted in overview above, the system and method described hereinenhance subscriber communication problem resolution through a uniquecombination of innovative strategies to improve the subscriberexperience while reducing the time and cost associated with solving suchproblems. The system attempts to connect to a vehicle in data mode toprovoke an error message and includes three primary modules forsubsequent error message handling including cellular error messagerecognition, error response handling, and capture of new error messages.

FIG. 2 is a structured flow chart showing communications and activitiesduring a process of automated MDN/MIN enumerated notification. Theentities involved in the illustrated process include the subscriber 201,the call center 203, and the communications network provider backend205. The process stems from a connectivity problem perceived by thesubscriber 201. In particular, at stage 211, the subscriber 201 contactsthe call center 203 and notifies the center 203 of cellular connectivityissues, e.g., dropped calls etc.

The call center 203 receives the call at stage 211 a. At stage 213, thecall center 203 identifies the error, if any, that is affecting thesubscriber's connectivity, via the trifurcated error handling mechanismdescribed above. In this same stage, the call center 203 also correctsthe identified problem as described above, e.g., by updating internalaccount parameters or requesting that the cellular provider re-enablethe subscriber's phone number.

After correcting the noted problem at stage 213, the system updates theuser account data at the back end 205 as well as the customer vehicledata at the subscriber vehicle 201 at stage 215, and the connection withthe vehicle 201 is ended at stage 217. At this point, the system mayconfirm at stage 219 that the problem has indeed been eliminated. In animplementation, this entails making a data call to the vehicle, whetheron a one-time basis or as part of a batch process, and capturing andprocessing any error messages as discussed above. If this check findsthat the problem has been alleviated, as determined at stage 221, thenthe process ends. Otherwise, the process returns to stage 213, toreattempt the correct identification and resolution of the problem.

As noted above, it may be desirable to automatically check cellularconnectivity without the continued involvement of a human advisor. Thiswould allow for more efficient batch processing of requests, and wouldfree advisors up to more efficiently multitask. An implementation ofthis type of automated error checking/correction is shown in FIG. 3,which is a structured flow chart showing activities at, andcommunications between, a call center advisor 301, a provider back end303, an automated connectivity probe 305, and a cellular carrier 307.

At stage 309, the call center advisor 301 submits a request for a checkof cellular connectivity to the provider back end 303. In conjunctionwith the automated probe 305, the back end 303 queues the request atstage 311, to await completion of any other ongoing requests, such asprior requests in the same batch or remaining requests from a priorbatch, in the case of batch processing.

Once the pending request reaches the head of the queue, or in the eventthat there are no prior requests pending, the subscriber phone numberassociated with the request is called in data mode by the automatedprobe 305 at stage 313. In one implementation, the physical callingmechanism associated with the automated probe 305 is a standalone modemapplying carrier tones that also listens for the various error messages.Once the automated probe 305 receives a response to the call, e.g., byreceiving an error message, the probe 305 interprets the message andderives a status of the cellular subscriber's connectivity condition.

At stage 315, the back end 303 returns an indicator of the status to theadvisor 301, who may then choose a further action based on the status.For example, at stage 317, the advisor, having received the statusindicator, selects to stay in data mode, go to voice mode, or close theinquiry entirely. If the status indicates a problem that the user may becausing, e.g., by using equipment improperly, the advisor may choose theoption to go to voice mode, whereas if the status indicates a problemthat can be resolved without user intervention, the choice is made tostay in data mode. If there is no problem indicated by the status, thenthe inquiry is simply closed.

In the event that the case stays open, and the identified error is onethat can be resolved from the call center, the call center makes thecorrection, either via the advisor or via automated correction asdiscussed above, and any required update information is updated at theback end 303 at stage 319. If the advisor has requested notification ofresolution of the problem, a screen notification may pop up on a monitoror computer used by the advisor at stage 321, ending the process.

As noted earlier, it is also possible to use the adaptive errorrecognition system in keeping with the disclosed system to perform anautomated retest function pursuant to advisor correction of anidentified error. An example implementation of this usage, scenario isillustrated via the structured flow chart of FIG. 4. In this scenario,an advisor 401 corrects a connectivity issue for a subscriber(subscriber vehicle telematics unit 403) via the service provider backend 405 and the automated probe 407. Thus, at stage 411, the user who isexperiencing the connectivity problem notifies an advisor, e.g., bypressing an appropriate button or other control element on their vehicletelematics unit. In response to the button press of stage 411, theadvisor 401 receives a corresponding call at stage 413. In response, theadvisor 401 attempts to identify and correct the problem, e.g., using atriage approach, at stage 415.

In an implementation, the telematics unit and backend 405 are updated instage 417 to reflect the error correction executed by the advisor 401.At this point, the process flows to stage 419, wherein the automatedprobe 407 retests the connection as described above using a data testcall in conjunction with automated error recognition and updatingfunctions. The results of the retest 419 are passed to the subscriber instage 421. If the retest determines that the connectivity issue has beencorrected, then the process further flows to stage 423 wherein theadvisor 401 is notified of the successful resolution.

If instead the retest determines that the connectivity issue has notbeen corrected, or if the retest detects another connectivity issue,then the process returns to stage 415 wherein the advisor 401 againattempts to restore cellular connectivity. From stage 415, the processcontinues as described above until the issue is successfully resolvedor, in one implementation, until a maximum number of unsuccessfulattempts, e.g., four unsuccessful attempts, is reached. In the eventthat an attempt limit is employed, the advisor may be prompted to reportthe connectivity issue to technical solutions department or the like forresolution after the final unsuccessful attempt.

In each scenario discussed above with reference to FIGS. 2-4, thetrifurcated error resolution mechanism is employed in a slightlydifferent role. In FIG. 5, the trifurcated mechanism itself is furtherdetailed according to one implementation, although it will beappreciated that other variations are possible as well. At stage 501 ofthe process 500, the automated probe receives a request to testsubscriber connectivity for a particular subscriber. As noted above,this may be an isolated request or may be part of a larger batchprocess. The probe then places a data call to the affected subscriberunit in stage 503. If the data call results in a successful connection,the process 500 terminates with a return message at stage 505 to therequester, e.g., an advisor, indicating that the connectivity is notdefective.

If instead, the probe receives an error message, the message is recordedand the process 500 flows to stage 507, wherein the probe accesses arecord of known error messages, e.g., recorded in a computer readableform on a computer readable medium such as in a database or other memorystructure or system. At stage 509, the probe compares the received errormessage to known error messages. If the received error message ismatched to a known error message in stage at 509, the process 500 flowsto stage 511, wherein the probe accesses an array of corrective dataassociated with the known error messages. In particular, each knownerror message is associated on the storage medium in the form of atable, linked array, etc., with at least one corrective action. At stage513, the probe executes the corrective action or actions associated withthe known error.

Corrective actions typically include known effective solutions to knownerrors. For example, an error message indicating that the calledcellular number is not active may be associated with a corrective actionthat specifies steps for reactivating the device MIN/MDN via aninterface with the appropriate carrier's provisioning system.

If the received error message is not matched with a known error messagein stage 509, the process 500 flows instead to stage 515. At stage 515,the probe transmits the recorded error message to an advisor forresolution. The advisor may resolve the problem or may instruct theprobe itself to resolve the problem, but in either case, the probereceives information specifying one or more corrective actions toresolve the error in stage 517. From this stage, the process 500 flowsto stage 519, wherein the probe updates the record of known errors toinclude the instant error and an associated entry including the receivedcorrective instructions.

It can be seen that by the conclusion of process 500, the subscriberconnectivity issue has been checked with minimal advisor involvement,and if an error is found, the process resolves the error for known andunknown errors alike, while updating known error records to reflect anypreviously unknown errors.

In an alternative implementation, before passing an unknown error to theadvisor, the probe may search an unknown error message for known wordsor phrases, and may take action based on identifying such words. Forexample, the words/phrases “inactive,” “deactivated,” “not available,”“outside coverage area,” etc. may be used to trigger specific correctiveactivities. If such corrective actions are successful, the error soidentified may be added to the record of known errors.

In any of its implementations in keeping with the disclosed principles,the disclosed system allows a live advisor's manual process to beshortened through a three part automated process that not only assistswith the immediate communication problem, but also allows the system tolearn new errors and solutions to facilitate the solution of futurecommunications problems. Whether the usage scenario involves an offlineadvisor working to resolve a subscriber communications issue or aninbound technical advisor, or even the batched automated check on agroup of predefined vehicles, the described system reduces advisorworkload while improving the subscriber experience.

It will also be appreciated, however, that the foregoing methods andimplementations for solving subscriber communication problems are merelyexamples of the inventive principles, and that these illustrate onlypreferred techniques. It is contemplated that other implementations ofthe invention may differ in detail from foregoing examples. As such, allreferences to the invention are intended to reference the particularexample of the invention being discussed at that point in thedescription and are not intended to imply any limitation as to the scopeof the invention more generally. All language of distinction anddisparagement with respect to certain features is intended to indicate alack of preference for those features, but not to exclude such from thescope of the invention entirely unless otherwise indicated.

The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in thecontext of describing the invention (especially in the context of thefollowing claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and theplural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted bycontext. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing”are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, butnot limited to”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of valuesherein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referringindividually to each separate value falling within the range, unlessotherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated intothe specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methodsdescribed herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwiseindicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The useof any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”)provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the inventionand does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unlessotherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construedas indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice ofthe invention.

Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalentsof the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permittedby applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-describedelements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by theinvention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearlycontradicted by context.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method of resolvinga connectivity problem experienced by a user of a cellularcommunications device in attempting to use the cellular communicationsdevice by use of an automated probe, the method comprising: receiving,at a backend server, a call center request to address a connectivityproblem for a cellular communications device; initiating, by anautomated probe in association with processing the call center request,a data call to the cellular communications device, wherein the data callentails no audible ringing and no user interaction at the cellularcommunications device; receiving, by the automated probe, from thecellular communications device, an error message responsive to the datacall, wherein the error message provides an error value relating toconnectivity status of the cellular communications device; applying,after the receiving, the error value to an array of known error messagevalues and corresponding corrective actions; determining whether theerror message value is present in known error message values of thearray of known error message values and corresponding correctiveactions; and conditionally processing the error message value by:executing a corrective action corresponding to the error message valuespecified by an entry from the array of known error message values andcorresponding corrective actions where a known error message valuecorresponds to the error message value; and otherwise transmitting theerror message value to an advisor if the error message value is notpresent in the array of known error message values and correspondingcorrective actions, receiving at least one additional corrective action,and updating the array of known error message values and correspondingcorrective actions to include an additional error message entryspecifying the error message value and a corresponding correctiveaction.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the receiving anerror message comprises receiving an audible error message.
 3. Themethod according to claim 2, wherein the determining whether the errormessage value is present in the known error message values comprisesmatching the error message value to an error message value for an entryof the array of known error message values and corresponding correctiveactions.
 4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the determiningwhether the error message value is present in the known error messagevalues comprises matching a portion of the error message value to a likeportion of an error message value for an entry the array of known errormessage values and corresponding corrective actions.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the array of known error messages andcorresponding corrective actions includes one or more entries havingcorresponding corrective actions that specify transmitting instructionsto a service provider associated with the cellular communicationsdevice.
 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the transmittedinstructions include an instruction to reactivate one or both of amobile identification number (MIN) or a mobile directory number (MDN)associated with the cellular communications device.
 7. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein executing a corrective action comprisesdetermining that execution of the at least one corrective action wassuccessful and transmitting a success indicator to an advisor.
 8. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the initiating the data callfollows a live advisor attempt to resolve the connectivity problem.
 9. Acomputer-implemented method of resolving a connectivity problemexperienced by a user of a cellular communications device in attemptingto use the cellular communications device by use of an automated probe,the method comprising: initiating, on the automated probe, a test of thecellular connectivity of the cellular communications device, the testcomprising: placing a data call to the cellular communications device,wherein the data call entails no audible ringing and no user interactionat the cellular communications device; receiving an error messageresponsive to the data call, wherein the error message provides an errorvalue relating to connectivity status of the cellular communicationsdevice; applying, after the receiving, the error value to an array ofknown error message values and corresponding corrective actions;determining whether the error message value is present in known errormessage values of the array of known error message values andcorresponding corrective actions; and conditionally processing the errormessage value by: executing a corrective action corresponding to theerror message value specified by an entry from the array of known errormessage values and corresponding corrective actions where a known errormessage value corresponds to the error message value; and otherwisetransmitting the error message value to an advisor if the error messagevalue is not present in the array of known error message values andcorresponding corrective actions.
 10. The method according to claim 9,wherein transmitting the error message value to an advisor if thereceived message is not present in the array of known errors furthercomprises: receiving at least one additional corrective action, andupdating the array of known error message values and correspondingcorrective actions to include an additional error message entryspecifying the error message value and a corresponding correctiveaction.
 11. The method according to claim 9, wherein receiving an errormessage comprises receiving an audible error message.
 12. The methodaccording to claim 11, wherein the determining whether the error messagevalue is present in the known error message values comprises matchingthe error message value to an error message value for a entry of thearray of known error message values and corresponding correctiveactions.
 13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the determiningwhether the error message value is present in the known error messagevalues comprises matching a portion of the error message value to a likeportion of an error message value for an entry of the array of knownerror message values and corresponding corrective actions.
 14. Themethod according to claim 9, wherein the array of known error messagesand corresponding corrective actions includes one or more entries havingcorresponding corrective actions that specify transmitting instructionsto a service provider associated with the cellular communicationsdevice.
 15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the transmittedinstructions include an instruction to reactivate one or both of amobile identification number (MIN) or a mobile directory number (MDN)associated with the cellular communications device.
 16. The methodaccording to claim 9, wherein executing a corrective action comprisesdetermining that execution of the at least one corrective action wassuccessful and transmitting a success indicator to an advisor.
 17. Themethod according to claim 9, wherein the initiating the data callfollows a live advisor attempt to resolve the connectivity problem. 18.A non-transitory system for correcting a cellular connectivity errorwith respect to a vehicle telematics unit, the non-transitory systemcomprising; a dialer for placing an unmanned data call to the vehicletelematics unit; a known error store for recording known connectivityerror indicators in conjunction with known corrective actions, eachknown error being associated in the store with at least one knowncorrective action; and an automated error corrector for detecting andrecording an error message responsive to the data call placed to thevehicle telematics unit, wherein the automated error corrector comprisesa processing hardware and a non-transitory computer readable mediumcomprising computer executable instructions that, when executed by theprocessing hardware, cause the system to perform a method comprising:initiating a data call to the cellular communications device, whereinthe data call entails no audible ringing and no user interaction at thecellular communications device; receiving from the cellularcommunications device, an error message responsive to the data call,wherein the error message provides an error value relating toconnectivity status of the cellular communications device; applying,after the receiving, the error value to an array of known error messagevalues and corresponding corrective actions; determining whether theerror message value is present in known error message values of thearray of known error message values and corresponding correctiveactions; and conditionally processing the error message value by:executing a corrective action corresponding to the error message valuespecified by an entry from the array of known error message values andcorresponding corrective actions where a known error message valuecorresponds to the error message value; and otherwise transmitting theerror message value to an advisor if the error message value is notpresent in the array of known error message values and correspondingcorrective actions.
 19. The non-transitory system for correcting acellular connectivity error according to claim 18, wherein theconditionally processing further comprises in association with thetransmitting: receiving at least one additional corrective action, andupdating the array of known error message values and correspondingcorrective actions to include an additional error message entryspecifying the error message value and a corresponding correctiveaction.
 20. The non-transitory system for correcting a cellularconnectivity error according to claim 18, wherein the automated errorcorrector is further configured with computer-executable instructionsfacilitating parsing a previously unknown error message to identify oneor more key words within the previously unknown error message.
 21. Thenon-transitory system according to claim 18, wherein the receiving anerror message comprises receiving an audible error message.
 22. Thenon-transitory system according to claim 18, wherein the determiningwhether the error message value is present in the known error messagevalues comprises matching the error message value to an error messagevalue for an entry of the array of known error message values andcorresponding corrective actions.
 23. The non-transitory systemaccording to claim 18, wherein the determining whether the error messagevalue is present in the known error message values comprises matching aportion of the error message value to a like portion of an error messagevalue for an entry of the array of known error message values andcorresponding corrective actions.
 24. The non-transitory systemaccording to claim 18, wherein the array of known error messages andcorresponding corrective actions includes one or more entries havingcorresponding corrective actions that specify transmitting instructionsto a service provider associated with the cellular communicationsdevice.
 25. The non-transitory system according to claim 24, wherein thetransmitted instructions include an instruction to reactivate one orboth of a mobile identification number (MIN) or a mobile directorynumber (MDN) associated with the cellular communications device.
 26. Thenon-transitory system according to claim 18, wherein executing acorrective action comprises determining that execution of the at leastone corrective action was successful and transmitting a successindicator to an advisor.
 27. The non-transitory system according toclaim 18, wherein the initiating the data call follows a live advisorattempt to resolve the connectivity problem.